Caroling Dusk
First published in 1927 during the height of the Harlem Renaissance, Caroling Dusk collects poems from established and emerging Black poets of the early 20th century. Curated by Countee Cullen, the anthology showcases a rich diversity of voices-including Paul Laurence Dunbar, Langston Hughes, and Georgia Douglas Johnson-each grappling with identity, art, race, and spirituality. This collection remains a cornerstone in African American literary history, preserving the cultural and poetic legacy of a pivotal era.
Among its most influential contributors, Paul Laurence Dunbar stands as the spiritual cornerstone of the volume, praised for elevating African American poetry to national recognition with both dialect and classical forms. Langston Hughes brings the energy of the modern Black experience into verse, capturing the rhythms of jazz, the blues, and the streets of Harlem. James Weldon Johnson, a towering figure in literature and civil rights, blends biblical cadence with political vision in his celebrated "Negro Sermons in Verse."
Other notable voices-like Georgia Douglas Johnson, one of the first Black women to gain national attention as a poet; and Anne Spencer, whose imagery recalls imagist traditions-demonstrate the wide stylistic and thematic range of the era's Black poets. Together, these writers offer a vibrant, complex, and enduring portrait of Black life, artistry, and resilience.
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